Disney prides itself on its recipe for “delighting customers,” a recipe it says includes putting employees first. They tout this as a key to their success in creating “a culture where going the extra mile for customers comes naturally” for employees. One method of creating this culture is referring to its employees as “cast members.” In fact, Disney is so proud of its organizational culture that it’s even created an institute to share its magic with other businesses (for a consulting fee, of course).

So, you would expect a firm that puts its employees first to share the vast prosperity that’s been created with the very employees who went above and beyond to help generate those record profits.

Well, how did Mr. Iger repay his workers—sorry, I mean cast members—for creating all this profit? Not with bonuses and a big raises. Instead, as the New York Times just detailed in a major report, he forced hundreds of them to train their own replacements—temporary foreign workers here on H-1B guestworker visas—before he laid them off.

What motivates a company to replace its American workers with H-1B guestworkers? One word: Profit. H-1B guestworkers are cheaper than American workers and don’t have much bargaining power, and any company would be foolish not to take advantage of this highly lucrative business model that has been inadvertently created by Congress and multiple presidential administrations. Of course, this business model is paid for by destroying the livelihoods and dignity of tens of thousands of American workers. The costs are also borne by American taxpayers, through foregone tax revenue and the additional social services that need to be provided for those newly unemployed American workers.

The full story of Disney’s injustice hasn’t yet come to light, because the company isn’t willing to speak about it, and displaced American workers are afraid to talk because they fear they won’t be hired elsewhere. Further, the Obama administration has refused to investigate any of the recent listed H-1B abuse cases. We know that Disney hired HCL, a major India-based offshore outsourcing firm, to bring in its H-1B workers. Like its rivals Tata, Infosys, and Wipro, HCL is one of the top H-1B employers in America. HCL is a publicly traded company, whose CEO Vineet Nayer once proclaimed that recent American graduates are “unemployable” because they expect too much and are too expensive to train.

HCL was the sixth largest recipient of H-1B visas in fiscal year 2013, with the Obama administration approving 1,713 H-1B visas for its workers. Like most top H-1B employers, government data reveal that HCL uses the program for cheap, temporary labor rather than as bridge to permanent immigration. In fiscal 2013 it applied for only 128 green cards, compared to its 1,713 new H-1B workers, or 7 percent of the H-1Bs it hired that year (because H-1B visas are valid for up to six years, HCL’s total H-1B workforce is much larger, but it does not disclose this information).

According to government data acquired through a Freedom of Information Act request, the median wage HCL paid those 1,713 H-1B workers was $61,984, which is essentially the entry level wage for an information technology (IT) worker, and more importantly, a 25 percent discount on the median wage of $82,710 for Computer Systems Analysts in the United States. Moreover, it’s almost certain that Disney’s 25 percent H-1B discount is an understatement, because many of the laid off Disney workers I spoke with were earning approximately $100,000, and had been employed there for many years, so they had also earned and accumulated benefits packages based on their seniority.

It’s important to point out that Disney is not an outlier, it’s the norm. Loopholes in the H-1B program make it irresistible to corporations, whose sole goal has become to maximize profits and shareholder value. Appealing to patriotism, corporate social responsibility, or even a sense of moral decency is a fool’s game. If you don’t believe me, look no further than Disney, whichbrags about its awards for its corporate social responsibility.

I doubt good ol Walt would like that. He was a firm believer in American exceptionalism.

I went to Disneyworld a year ago and so many of the employees were from South America. It's not that they shouldn't be given a chance to work but they should be building their countries up or properly immigrating to the U.S. Taking our small jobs is just fucked.

I doubt good ol Walt would like that. He was a firm believer in American exceptionalism.

I went to Disneyworld a year ago and so many of the employees were from South America. It's not that they shouldn't be given a chance to work but they should be building their countries up for properly immigrating to the U.S. Taking our small jobs is just fucked.

That piece of shit ride had a 35 minute wait. 35 minutes for a ride people thought was lame when Disneyland opened.

I would never go back to Disneyworld, it's basically the same damn experience as Disneyland but instead of being in 2 dense parks it's in 4. Doesn't even have the awesome Indiana Jones ride. Oh and instead of nice Anaheim weather you get humid swamp Orlando, how pretty.

That piece of shit ride had a 35 minute wait. 35 minutes for a ride people thought was lame when Disneyland opened.

I would never go back to Disneyworld, it's basically the same damn experience as Disneyland but instead of being in 2 dense parks it's in 4. Doesn't even have the awesome Indiana Jones ride. Oh and instead of nice Anaheim weather you get humid swamp Orlando, how pretty.

Universal Studios Florida though, that place is fun.

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You said it!

I did a lil LSD at universal studios back in the late 90s. Fuckin back to the future ride was mind blowing!!!

there are lots of issues about this besides the immediate money ones mentioned: for example, even when you are employed "at will" it is very difficult for a US company to get rid of non-performing employees. it is very simple to get rid of under performing foreign workers: you just reassign the visa and they have to return home. Some other countries realize this and make it expensive to do that: Singapore labor laws require employees to give even foreign workers in the country on work visas 30 days minimum paid notice and if the employer wants to hire someone away from another company, they have to give the transferring guy 30+ days to clean up his affairs with his current employer. You want the H-1B visa game to stop, don;t make a big stink about it in the press because the politicians won't do shit (they are in on it). Just get a regulatory change to the labor laws to mimic Singapore.

That piece of shit ride had a 35 minute wait. 35 minutes for a ride people thought was lame when Disneyland opened.

I would never go back to Disneyworld, it's basically the same damn experience as Disneyland but instead of being in 2 dense parks it's in 4. Doesn't even have the awesome Indiana Jones ride. Oh and instead of nice Anaheim weather you get humid swamp Orlando, how pretty.

Universal Studios Florida though, that place is fun.

Click to expand...

it was > 90 minutes wait for it when it opened at the 1964 Worlds Fair (I rode it "a few times", often as part of a courtesy deal my dad got from GAF film and the NYC newspapers - its where i first drank Pabst beer cause it was free at the Disney World of Tomorrow pavilion during the courtesy trips). The movie Tomorrowland is pretty close to what i remember their thing at the Worlds Fail being like)

That piece of shit ride had a 35 minute wait. 35 minutes for a ride people thought was lame when Disneyland opened.

I would never go back to Disneyworld, it's basically the same damn experience as Disneyland but instead of being in 2 dense parks it's in 4. Doesn't even have the awesome Indiana Jones ride. Oh and instead of nice Anaheim weather you get humid swamp Orlando, how pretty.

Universal Studios Florida though, that place is fun.

Click to expand...

Yep, they diluted the parks so they could get 2 extra "gates" to charge for . It has attractions for two good parks, the rest is filler. The bonus for them is guests spend hours outside of the parks getting from one to the other, so they can squeeze more paying customers in.

Disney prides itself on its recipe for “delighting customers,” a recipe it says includes putting employees first. They tout this as a key to their success in creating “a culture where going the extra mile for customers comes naturally” for employees. One method of creating this culture is referring to its employees as “cast members.” In fact, Disney is so proud of its organizational culture that it’s even created an institute to share its magic with other businesses (for a consulting fee, of course).

So, you would expect a firm that puts its employees first to share the vast prosperity that’s been created with the very employees who went above and beyond to help generate those record profits.

Well, how did Mr. Iger repay his workers—sorry, I mean cast members—for creating all this profit? Not with bonuses and a big raises. Instead, as the New York Times just detailed in a major report, he forced hundreds of them to train their own replacements—temporary foreign workers here on H-1B guestworker visas—before he laid them off.

What motivates a company to replace its American workers with H-1B guestworkers? One word: Profit. H-1B guestworkers are cheaper than American workers and don’t have much bargaining power, and any company would be foolish not to take advantage of this highly lucrative business model that has been inadvertently created by Congress and multiple presidential administrations. Of course, this business model is paid for by destroying the livelihoods and dignity of tens of thousands of American workers. The costs are also borne by American taxpayers, through foregone tax revenue and the additional social services that need to be provided for those newly unemployed American workers.

The full story of Disney’s injustice hasn’t yet come to light, because the company isn’t willing to speak about it, and displaced American workers are afraid to talk because they fear they won’t be hired elsewhere. Further, the Obama administration has refused to investigate any of the recent listed H-1B abuse cases. We know that Disney hired HCL, a major India-based offshore outsourcing firm, to bring in its H-1B workers. Like its rivals Tata, Infosys, and Wipro, HCL is one of the top H-1B employers in America. HCL is a publicly traded company, whose CEO Vineet Nayer once proclaimed that recent American graduates are “unemployable” because they expect too much and are too expensive to train.

HCL was the sixth largest recipient of H-1B visas in fiscal year 2013, with the Obama administration approving 1,713 H-1B visas for its workers. Like most top H-1B employers, government data reveal that HCL uses the program for cheap, temporary labor rather than as bridge to permanent immigration. In fiscal 2013 it applied for only 128 green cards, compared to its 1,713 new H-1B workers, or 7 percent of the H-1Bs it hired that year (because H-1B visas are valid for up to six years, HCL’s total H-1B workforce is much larger, but it does not disclose this information).

According to government data acquired through a Freedom of Information Act request, the median wage HCL paid those 1,713 H-1B workers was $61,984, which is essentially the entry level wage for an information technology (IT) worker, and more importantly, a 25 percent discount on the median wage of $82,710 for Computer Systems Analysts in the United States. Moreover, it’s almost certain that Disney’s 25 percent H-1B discount is an understatement, because many of the laid off Disney workers I spoke with were earning approximately $100,000, and had been employed there for many years, so they had also earned and accumulated benefits packages based on their seniority.

It’s important to point out that Disney is not an outlier, it’s the norm. Loopholes in the H-1B program make it irresistible to corporations, whose sole goal has become to maximize profits and shareholder value. Appealing to patriotism, corporate social responsibility, or even a sense of moral decency is a fool’s game. If you don’t believe me, look no further than Disney, whichbrags about its awards for its corporate social responsibility.